Lies Have Short Legs, Are They Worth It?

Comparing "Taming of the Shrew" with "Wedding Crashers" about Honesty and Deception and Love at First Sight.

In "Taming of the Shrew" you have 2 men that help each other out to win the heart of the sweet and kind daughter, Bianca. Those mens names are Lucentio and Tranio, and using deception and trickery, they cajole Bianca and her father Baptista to believe them, when they join in as school masters to 'teach' Bianca. Their true goal however is to win her love so that Lucentio can win her heart. We can compare this to John and Jeremy from "Wedding Crashers" as they use deception to trick the families of the bride/groom to get with girls from the Wedding Reception. In this case, John can take the place of Lucentio, Jeremy as Tranio and the girl John is after is Claire which could be portrayed as Bianca.

There are quite some differences mixed in with the whole scheme or plot of taking Claire. One difference is that John and Jeremy are just friends, not master and servant, there is no hierarchy distinguishing them. Along those lines John and Jeremy are going after different women so Jeremy is not focused only on helping John get with Claire as Tranio was with Lucentio. The series of obstacles for John and Lucentio are different as well, as Claire is already in a pre-existing relationship with a boyfriend, and Bianca being a so called "free agent".

The journey for Lucentio and John are similar but different in ways but both portray times of humour and fun, giving them a well rounded introduction to their journey, middle and conclusion which enables them to be compared more easily. It all ties down to showing how fast relationships can change with the right moves made and the determination to do those moves to win the love of someone, upon first sight none-the-less.

Quote 1 from "The Taming of The Shrew"


(Tranio talking to Lucentio) "You will be schoolmaster and undertake the teaching of the maid: Thats your device" (pg 43, Act I, Scene I) This is where Tranio and Lucentio come up with 2 different plans and Lucentio asks Tranio to present his plan first to win the heart of Bianca. This is where their journey essentially begins as Tranio tells him that he can dress up as a school master to get closer to Bianca, allowing them to bond. Lucentio is essentially not cut out to be a true teacher but all is fair when fighting for ones love.
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Here in the above picture is John (right) and Jeremy (left) putting on a kippah (Jewish hat) and pretending to be Jews to get girls attention during the wedding ceremony.

In the movie "Wedding Crashers" the whole plot of it is for John and Jeremy to get ready for 'wedding season' to hunt for girls so that they have one night stands. Part of their usual routine is to use deception, both visual and mental to feed lies and make themselves look like good guys while the girls just fall into their hands. First they have to make a full-proof storyline of who they are within the 'family'
"Bingo! Im gonna go grab my gray suit... Oh! Who are we this time?" -Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers)


Quote 2 from the "The Taming of The Shrew"


(Lucentio to Tranio) "O Tranio, till I found it to be true, I never thought it possible or likely. But see, while idly I stood looking on, I found the effect of love-in-idleness, and now in plainness do confess to thee that art to me as secret and as dear as Anna to the Queen of Carthage was: Tranio, I burn, I pine! I perish, Tranio, if I achieve not this young modest girl. Counsel me, Tranio, for I know thou canst. Assist me, Tranio, for I know thou wilt. (pg. 41, Act I, Scene I) Lucentio expresses what he feels when he is finally along with Tranio, when he first saw Bianca. He tells him that he is in love; in love on first sight which is one of the topics we had to choose from.
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Here above is John when he first spots the bridesmaid, Claire heading up the aisle.

Torwards the beginning of "Wedding Crashers" John and Jeremy are in the church attending the ceremony as they scan the area for possible girls to hitch a one night stand with. At first John spots Claire and thinks she would be the perfect girl, but boy... was he mistaken... All the while his friend Jeremy finds a girl he would see fit.
"Helloooooo Red.... Dibs! (Jeremy) She's all yours, Im not gonna fight ya for her. (John)" - Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn (Wedding Crashers)



Conclusion

In the end, of course as all happy endings go, John and Claire get together right before the wedding and the fiance gets mad, as any other fiance would, tries to punch John right in the face, but gets stopped by Jeremy and gets punched in the face. A 'happily ever after' ending. This relates differently then the "Shrew" in the sense as it is a happy ending but it was not based on Bianca, rather on Katherine. The "Shrew's" true goal was to prove that even a shrew could get tamed, while the true goal of "Wedding Crashers" is that even bad people with bad plans can turn good when met up with someone true to themselves.